


give it a try, it'll be alright

by Acaeria



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, Magnus Feels Left Out, Stolen Century Spoilers, Taako Did Not Sign Up For This, The Twins' Weakness is Puppy Dog Eyes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-11-04 21:27:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10999332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Acaeria/pseuds/Acaeria
Summary: “I can’t believe I spent an entire year weightlifting. That’s two years back-to-back! I’m getting pretty decent at it I guess!”“I’ve been studying magic! I’m super good at conjuration now!”“And I’m good at fighting and we’re best friends!”--or, Magnus wants to feel included and Taako learns how to hit





	give it a try, it'll be alright

**Author's Note:**

> I know this was just a joke but like... I really like the idea of it.
> 
> Also this is my first time writing for taz and it usually takes me a fic or two to get a hang of things, so please excuse anything and everything. 
> 
> Title from All About Us by He is We

“Maybe I’m just not cut out for this,” Magnus huffs frustratedly. Taako hums contemplatively. 

“Well, you’re certainly not a natural,” he comments. Seeing Magnus’ downturned expression, he adds, “But you’ll manage it eventually. It’ll just take you longer!”

Magnus sighs, turning the wand over in his fingers. It feels so thin, so fragile- he could probably crush it with the slightest squeeze of his hand. “I guess.”

“Why’d you want to learn magic, anyway?” Taako asks, sitting at the bench opposite him and sort of  _ lounging _ his upper body across the table. “We already have, like, six magic users on this ship.”   
“That’s the point!” Magnus says. “Everyone else knows magic, and I  _ don’t _ , and I feel- I don’t know,  _ left out _ , I guess? I see you guys doing all this cool shit, and it just… I don’t know, bums me out, I guess.”

Taako snorts. “Trust me, my dude, you’re not missing out on much. Sure, at first, it’s cool and all that, but after forty years of being this ship’s arcanist? It gets  _ old _ .”

Magnus sighs. “Look, you don’t have to try to make me feel better-”

“I’m not! Seriously, my man, I’m bored as hell! I’d love to try something new, but- what is there?”

Magnus raises an eyebrow. “ _ You _ wanna try something new?” 

“Yes!”   
And then, and idea strikes Magnus, and he bites back a grin. “You know… if you give me magic lessons, I can show you some of my moves.”

Taako takes a moment to comprehend that. “You mean… Fighting?” 

“You know it.”   
“Oh. Oh, no, no, no, no, no.” Taako sits back, incredulous. “You see, I’m not a fighter. I’m more of a runner. Magnus rushes in? Taako’s good out here.”

“You don’t actually have to fight,” Magnus tells him. “But it’s good to know how to defend yourself, if you ever need it.”   
“I have magic,” Taako points out. “Even if I’m out of spell slots, there are still cantrips I can use. When would I ever-”   
“You never know,” Magnus insists. “Besides, didn’t you say you wanted to learn something new?” 

“Well, I suppose…”

“Why don’t you just try it?” Magnus says. “You don’t need to stick with it- if you really hate it, you can drop it, no problem, no harm done. But you’re right, these cycles can get monotonous- it won’t hurt just to change it up a little.”

“...Fine,” Taako sighs. “Why the fuck not! It’s not like there’s much else to do, anyway.” 

Magnus smiles. Taako rolls his eyes.

* * *

 It’s actually… not bad. Not like he thought it’d be, anyway. Magnus… isn’t great at magic. It takes him months to even manage a cantrip. When he does, his eyes light up, and he whoops in delight, grabbing Taako and spinning him round in the air. 

“I did it!” he cries, as excited as a kid on Candlenights’. Taako gasps for air.

“Hey, hey, put me down! Get off! Ya big oaf, I can’t breathe!”

Magnus does, dropping him and looking guilty for a moment before lighting up again. “I did it,” he says again, almost in disbelief. “I really…”   
“Yeah, you did good, big guy,” Taako says. “Think you can do it again?”

Though, as long as it takes Magnus to get a hang of magic, it takes longer for Taako to be any good in a fight. He’s never been particularly strong, and against the muscle wall that is Magnus, he doesn’t stand a chance. But Magnus is nothing but patient, leading him through a series of strength-building exercises, showing him the proper way to punch and kick and fall. And Taako finds that despite himself, he enjoys it. It’s almost… relaxing, in a way, and there’s more strategy to it then he would have thought. Not that strategy is exactly his forte, but he definitely has a lot more respect for Magnus (“dumb muscle” is what Taako may have called him once, but not any more. Magnus Burnsides is anything but dumb). 

It’s a slow, arduous trek, one that goes far beyond their comfort zones, but they don’t regret it in the slightest.

* * *

 Taako’s strengths lie definitely more in defence than they do in offence. It’s not a bad thing, and Magnus tries to cater his lessons more towards that style of fighting, even if it’s not exactly the style he’s best at. The best defence is offence in his opinion, but Taako- Taako doesn’t like to get his hands dirty. He flinches easily and runs at the slightest hint of danger. His dodging ability is actually impressive- one time, Taako _backflips_ away from a blow, and Magnus just has to stop and clap. Because honestly, _wow_. 

“What?” Taako asks, raising a confused eyebrow at him and crossing his arms across his chest. Magnus shakes his head.

“Nothing! Just- that was pretty cool.” Taako scoffs. “No, seriously!” Magnus insists. “You’re like, some sort of flipwizard.” Taako bursts out laughing at that. 

“Flipwizard?” he asks, snickering. “Oh, man, that’s great. Wait ‘til I tell Lup, she’ll have a field day with that one.”

The day Taako firsts lands a punch on Magnus, both of them freeze. It wasn’t a strong punch, and it didn’t really hurt, but-  _ but _ . Taako stares at his fist like he’s never seen it before, and Magnus cracks a grin. “You did it!” he cries excitedly.

“I… did it,” Taako echoes, sounding bewildered. Wrapped up in his excitement, Magnus sweeps the elf up in his arms and spins him around in a victory dance. 

“You did it!”   
“Hey, hey, hey, what did I say! No touchy! Put me down!” Magnus drops Taako, startled.

“Sorry,” he says, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. “I just… got excited?” Somehow the truth sounds like a lame excuse, even to his ears. Taako doesn’t seem to mind, just brushing himself down and rolling his eyes in a way Magnus has come to recognise as more fond than annoyed. 

“Yeah, yeah,” he mutters. “Just don’t do it again, or I swear, I  _ will _ magic missile your ass.”

“Noted,” Magnus says, and smiles again.  

* * *

 

Lup finds him in the kitchen one day as he’s whipping up some cake mix and plops herself down on one of the stools. “You know…” she says conversationally, tapping her fingers against the countertop, “You’ve been spending an awful lot of time with Magnus recently.”   
“Yeah. So?” Taako doesn’t glance up at her as he dips his finger into the mix for a taste. 

“You know you can tell me anything, right, bro?” Taako frowns.

“Well, yeah, what-” He freezes for a moment, then whips his head up, glaring at her. “ _ Really _ , Lulu? You don’t think I’d tell you if I was dating somebody?” Lup shrugged.

“I dunno, maybe he’s shy?” Taako scoffs.

“If there’s one thing Magnus Burnsides is  _ not _ , it’s  _ shy _ .” Pouring the mixture into the tin, he continues, “Why would you even think that, anyway? Can I not have friends without my sister thinking I have a secret boyfriend?”

“Taako.” Lup’s voice is pointed, and he can tell she’s pouting without even looking at her face. “It’s just that the two of you are so  _ secretive _ lately. What are you even  _ doing _ ?” 

“I’m teaching him magic,” Taako says bluntly, and Lup is silent for a good minute or so. He picks the tin up and slides it into the oven. She regains her ability to speak just as he closes the door, exclaiming loudly,

“Wait,  _ what _ ?” 

“You heard me,” Taako says, turning to her and slipping of the oven gloves. She looks almost dumbfounded. 

“You know, I never would’ve taken Magnus for the type…”   
“Oh, he’s not,” Taako snorts. “He’s not very good, to tell you the truth. But he said he wanted to learn because he felt left out, and you  _ know _ how he is with the puppy dog eyes.”

“It’s unnatural for a man that big to be that cute,” Lup agrees. Then, “So, what is he doing for you? You seriously didn’t get nothing out of this deal.”

“He’s teaching me to fight.”   
“ _ Excuse _ me?” For the second time in this conversation, Lup is speechless, opening and closing her mouth with no words coming out. 

“Yeah, it was like, I teach him some of my moves, he teaches me some of his, you know how it is.” Taako waves his hand flippantly, like it’s no big deal. Lup seems to be over her shock, and is now grinning. 

“You’ll have to show me your moves, lil’ bro.” She cracks her knuckles. Taako shakes his head.

“Uh, no way. I’m a shitty fighter, and I don’t feel like getting beat to a pulp by my twin sister- emphasis on  _ twin _ .” 

“But I need to assert my dominance as the older and stronger twin!” Lup cries. “I don’t want you getting any delusions of grandeur, Taako. Really, it’s for your own good.”   
“Lup, really, this is unnecessary-”

Five minutes later, he’s sprawled on the ground, Lup pinning him down and letting out a victory cry. Taako squirms beneath her.

“Come on, Lulu, get off, I  _ get _ it-” 

At that moment, Magnus and Barry walk into the room, and freeze at the doorway. Barry raises an eyebrow at the scene before him. “Do I… want to know?”

“It’s twin stuff, you wouldn’t understand,” Lup lies easily, getting up and holding a hand out to Taako. Taako takes it, huffing slightly, brushing himself down with his free hand. 

“Yeah, twin stuff,” he agrees. There’s a moment of slightly awkward silence before Magnus asks,

“So, we smelt cake?” 

* * *

 

The white lights drag them back to their same positions, and Merle reappears. It’s weird, in a way, how he leaves an emptiness in their crew, a Merle-spaced hole that is obvious in their every interaction- and now that it’s filled, everyone feels lighter in a way they can’t explain. Barely a second passes before they all crowd around him, listening to what happened last time- a year ago now, as hard as it is to believe. 

“So, uh, that’s what happened. What’ve you guys been up to, anyway?” Merle asks, shrugging off their questions. 

“I can’t believe I spent an entire year weightlifting,” Taako jokes. “That’s two years back-to-back! I’m getting pretty decent at it I guess!” Around him, the others start to chuckle; Magnus grins. 

“I’ve been studying magic! I’m super good at conjuration now!” It’s a lie, and they all know it- Magnus is shit at magic, and shit at conjuration, but hey, if you can’t mess with your teammate who’s been dead for two years straight, who  _ can _ you mess with? 

“And I’m good at fighting and we’re best friends!” Taako finishes, wrapping an arm around Magnus and giving a cheesy peace sign. Merle rolls his eyes and groans.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it, I get it. Well, I guess I best be going now…” The mood turns sour, as it always does, and it’s a solemn affair, watching Merle turn to smoke and then vanish before them. 

Throughout the entire thing, Taako keeps his arm wrapped around Magnus. 

* * *

 

Later, as they circle around each other in the training area, Magnus asks, “Did you mean it?”   
“Mean what, hombre?” 

“Earlier. About us being best friends.” 

Taako stops. Sighs. Puts a hand up to him, a single finger pointed toward his face. “Listen. Magnus. Listen. Me? I don’t do all that stuff.” 

“What… friendship?” Magnus asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah. Feelings and all that junk. That ain’t me, homie.”

“But… what about Lup?”   
“She’s my  _ sister _ .” 

“I guess, but what about Barry? He’s your friend, right?”   
“If that’s what you want to call it.” Magnus blinks at that, and then a small smile crosses his face. 

“So  _ you _ wouldn’t call  _ me _ your best friend… But I can totally call you my best friend?”   
“If you wanna, I mean, it’s not like I can stop you…”   
Magnus grins and wraps an arm around his shoulders, pulling him into a tight side-hug. “Taako, my  _ best friend _ ,” he says, and then, turning, as if to face an invisible audience, booms, “Everyone, I’d like you to meet my  _ best friend _ Taako, the world’s best flipwizard!”

“You know what, I change my mind.” Taako’s voice sounds squished and so, so done. 

“Aw, what was that, bestest best friend?” Magnus asks, and reaches up to ruffle Taako’s hair. The elf stiffens, and his next words are quietly livid.

“Magnus Burnsides let me go or I swear to the gods I will magic missile your ass.”

“But your wand’s all the way on the other side of the room,” Magnus points out. “How are you gonna get it when I’m holding you?” To demonstrate his point, Magnus lifts Taako up into his arms bridal-style and carries him towards the second set of doors on the other side of the room, away from his wand. Taako flails in his grip.

“Hey, hey let me go! Magnus Burnsides, you put me down right this instant!” 

“Hmm…” Magnus pretends to consider it for a moment. “Nope!” 

It isn’t long before the rest of the crew comes to find the source of the commotion. By this point, Magnus has upgraded to carrying Taako over his shoulder, potato-sack style, Taako drumming on his back with his fists and kicking at his chest but not doing any damage at all. They don’t even question it, instead just choosing to laugh at Taako’s plight. Taako groans, all the fight draining out of him as he goes limp on Magnus’ shoulder.

“Lulu, help me,” he pleads. Lup snickers. 

“You kidding? No way in hell do I want to end  _ this _ image.”

Taako groans again. Magnus laughs. 

* * *

 

It’s a good thirty minutes or so before Magnus finally puts him down- on the observation deck at the opposite side of the ship. Taako doesn’t even get up from where he’s been placed on the floor, just staring up at Magnus, pouting. 

“Was that really necessary?” he asks, sounding appropriately put-out and childish.

“Of course!” Magnus blusters. 

“You could have put me down, like, twenty minutes ago, rather than carrying me around the ship several times.”   
“I  _ could _ have,” Magnus agrees. 

“So why didn’t you?”   
Magnus cracks a smile. “I know it sounds cheesy, but I couldn’t let you go.”   
Taako sits up at that and smacks him in the leg several times. “I  _ fucking _ hate you,” he snaps, but there’s no bite to it. Magnus steps out the way.

“Aw, I love you too, buddy.”

**Author's Note:**

> I love these two and I want them to bond more tbh.


End file.
